Saw it not too long ago. Got it from the public library. It's quite interesting. Trivia: at about 8 minutes into the documentary German director Werner Herzog is seen chatting with Hoffman. Herzog actually gives the title to this documentary.

The documentary only lasts some 60 minutes, so it goes by rather quickly. Doesn't say that much about teas themselves, as it is rather about Hoffman and buying teas from small farms in China, and problems encountered along the way.

I'm still unsure about the bit where Hoffman says he had to tell the Chinese what good earthworms were for the soil. Eg. since the revolution Chinese farms were told to use pesticides and lost knowledge of natural farming. Unless he met a bunch of really clueless Chinese.

One thing for sure, Hoffman knows rapidly how to discard pesticide teas with a quick smell. I presume this kind of tea never makes it here as people would complain about its bad smell. On the other hand, excellent teas also does not seem to make it for the general consumer here.

Speaking of generals, recently I was told by a Chinese colleague that whole mountains are garded by the army so that these tea production goes to the leaders of the country.

All in all, things evolving around tea are interesting, be them historical or trade centered in our times. As such, this documentary is quite nice to watch. Although too short. Recommended.

Luckily I was able to get the movie through the university library without having to buy it to see it. After finally watching the movie I was a bit confused by the point of it. Was it just for entertainment or was it supposed to make Hoffman appear as someone who revolutionized tea?Not to bad of a movie though, worth watching at least once as it is interesting to see how tea is processed.

Besides the obvious Trials and Tribulations of trying to deal with trade in China at least at that point in time. I sorta view it that the movie was trying to get the point across that Those of us Outside of China should thank David Lee Hoffman for helping tear down some trade walls within China to let those of us outside China gain access to higher quality teas.

I like the parts of the documentary that are focusing on the tea more though, and the tea farmers.

I love that film! It's just in recent years buying tea through internet has become easier and easier. There were years I could hardly get myself enough tea from China. Watching that movie I was really moved that the man tried so hard importing good tea from China. I also like how hard he worked on the earthworm fertilizer. It's a great way to make organic fertilizer.

I am a bit skeptical about the smelling skill too. And I remember I was disgusted by the "tea art performance" at the beginning of the film. It's the typical good-looking, cheesy and phony kind of performance that is quite commonly seen in China and doesn't truly represent real tea drinking of ordinary people.